Mick Clifford: A half-built school lying idle is a lesson in the State's inability to get things done

Irish Examiner

3 days ago

A large construction site in Dublin's inner city is lying dormant. The cranes are still, hulking and silent. It's as if the place was suddenly abandoned on foot of some natural disaster, or even a spontaneous walk-off by workers in protest at deficiencies in safety.
In reality, it's nothing like that. Instead, the idle site of a half-built school at a time when all manner of infrastructure and housing is desperately needed, is attributable to a kind of stasis that is increasingly a feature of State-related projects. The task of actually getting things done efficiently and expeditiously has never been as frustrating.
The site in question is on Dominick Street, just off Parnell Square, and has been dormant since May 23. It was to be the location of an old and venerated school in the area, Gaelscoil Coláiste Mhuire.
Then last week, it emerged the contract with the builder had been terminated. As recently as autumn 2024, it was hoped the 16-classroom complex could be occupied for the coming school year. Now, all the indications are it will be 2027 before it can open for education.
The school has been in temporary accommodation for the past 23 years. That means private rented accommodation and all the cost and inconvenience that accrues from that. The new location was sourced from Dublin City Council, which owned the site, and was acquired by the Department of Education. So, two State bodies were involved in the transaction, which would infer the whole thing should be done quickly. It wasn't.
The tender for the job was won by a local contractor from north Dublin to a value of €11.5m. Today, the estimates are by the time the job is completed it will cost at least €22m.
According to the department, soon after the project began, 'a number of issues arose', something it says 'is not unusual given the nature of a brownfield city centre site'.
The school has been in temporary accommodation for the past 23 years. That means private rented accommodation and all the cost and inconvenience that accrues from that.
Well, yes and no. If the site had previously been in the ownership of a private entity, that might well be the case. But it wasn't. One way or the other, the department maintains these issues 'led to a delay'.
Among the 'unforeseen' issues was services on the site related to the adjoining Luas line, 'which had not been apparent until excavation began'.
How could that not be apparent? The Luas is loud and imposing. It didn't just appear. Surely, particularly as Dublin City Council had previously owned the site, that issue could have been foreseen and taken into account.
Another issue was with 'foundations of an adjoining protected building, which needed careful consideration as to a solution'. Right. This protected building was there all along, adjoining the site, its status as protected quite obviously known. And it wasn't foreseen there might be that kind of problem?
That was only the start of it. Further delays ensued. There were disputes with the contractor over who was responsible for what, and how much the various issues impacted on the original contract and price. This is precisely the kind of dispute that has seen the building of the National Children's Hospital expand from a job into a long-running saga.
Parents and local politicians were supposed to be kept in the loop as to how things were going, but that doesn't appear to have been the case.
When the delays to the school project were raised in the Seanad a few years ago, it emerged the department attributed some of the 'slippage' to staff now working from home. This is something that demands further inquiry from government.
Remote working is now, since the pandemic, part of the culture, and it has many positive attributes. But is it, as currently constituted, in any way delaying the convening of meetings between outside bodies such as construction firms and State bodies?
It has emerged differences between the department and the contractor were insurmountable, and the contract has been terminated. This will necessitate a half-built school going out to tender again.
Last year, the department decided the best way forward would be to appoint a project manager to liaise between department, the design team and the contractor. This project manager, according to the department, got off to a good start, 'identifying the key issues critical to the success of the project, developing various proposals and strategies to remedy any issues impacting programme, realigning the full project team roles and ageing the project delivery timelines and goals".
All of that is good stuff, but really why was it necessary at this stage of the game? A school is being built, not a city.
Despite the recharged run at things, more trouble lay ahead. Issues arose over the length of time it was taking for requests for information, a routine exercise in most projects. All of that culminated in May with the contractor and department in dispute, culminating with 'a temporary pause on works for now, under the suspension of works provisions of the contract', according to the department.
This 'provides an opportunity to consider outcomes from the conciliation process and the best way forward'. Make of that what you will.
Now it has emerged differences between the department and the contractor were insurmountable, and the contract has been terminated. This will necessitate a half-built school going out to tender again. There is also the possibility the contractor may seek legal recourse over what has happened, which could delay things further. All of that is apart from the ballooning costs since the job first went out to tender.
If this were an isolated case, there might be mitigation. But it comes in the wake of various delays, associated with the planning system, interdepartmental disputes over funding, and even the cancellation at a late stage of a proposal for social housing based on cost.
These issues all concern the State apparatus building much-needed infrastructure. Yet increasingly, for various reasons, almost all associated with how the State is operating, things are simply not getting done.
In statement, the Department of Education said "a temporary pause on works, under the suspension of works provisions of the contract, provided an opportunity to consider outcomes from the conciliation process".
A spokesperson said: "A notice of suspension of works was communicated to the contractor on May 23, 2025 in accordance with the provisions of the contract. During the suspension, the department carefully considered the best way to deliver a school building while also respecting its statutory obligations. The department issued a notice of termination under the contract on July 1, 2025 following careful consideration of the need to ensure compliance with those statutory obligations.
"Department officials will continue to work closely with the school principal and board of management. As an interim measure, the department is providing accommodation more suitable to the current needs of the school nearby in Cathal Brugha Street. The department is assessing all options open to it to expedite the delivery of a new school building, and as set out above, is in very regular contact with the school authorities."